Death Full Circle
by StrawberryCream
Summary: Her friends had died. Kagome had seen them die. Yet here they were, back to fighting evil, and they knew they would die within the week...and be reborn in the next dimension. When did being the good guys get so complicated?
1. Horrible

**Death Full Circle  
Chapter 1  
Horrible**

A fang was softly protruding past his lip. His eyes, half lidded, were blank and empty. Blood trickled down the side of his face, and his muscles were slumped in a way that surely meant death. His haori was torn and ripped, exposing most of his chest, and covered with blood. His hair would certainly be striped crimson forever, and his ears, as much as it pained her to note, didn't move at her call. He couldn't hear her, he wasn't moving, and he was covered in blood. Even she could piece together what all that meant. He would have called her stupid if she couldn't.

_He won't be calling me stupid ever again_...she thought. She could see the times when he had called her names, a scowl on his face. She could even remember those few times he'd smiled at her, the few times he'd said something nice without messing it up with some other comment.

She knew that if she didn't look away soon, this image of him would be forever ingrained into her memory. But she couldn't look away. It didn't matter anyway; she'd never forget it.

She heard Sango and Miroku run into the Bone Eater's Well clearing. She heard Sango gasp, and could practically see her hand move to her mouth. Miroku's staff clanged, and she could tell he'd dropped it. But she didn't care; she still wouldn't take her eyes off of Inuyasha.

"Oh, Inuyasha." she whispered. "Oh, _oh_..."

Her voice cracked as the previously banished tears stole down her cheek, and her shoulders suddenly shook with frame-wracking sobs. She leaned her head back and screamed her sorrow into the sky. The sun was slowly setting; the night would come soon.

Through all the racket she was making, she heard Sango take a step towards her, and cried harder. Her friend stopped, a tear slinking down her own cheek.

"Oh, Kagome..." she whispered, and Miroku put a hand around her shoulder. She turned to cry into his chest.

She stayed like that, shaking and quivering, throughout the night. Eventually she drew quiet; eyes squeezed shut, face contorted with the pain the sight before her wrought on her soul. She finally drew still as the sky lightened.

Kagome suddenly looked over to the now rising sun, past her two friends, as a figure came towards them. Miroku and Sango couldn't see who it was...didn't know...Not until too late.

A sudden gust of wind threw a particularly venomous haze of miasma towards them. Sango's eyes went wide, and she clutched her throat, gasping for breath, and Miroku began to sweat. Kagome was rooted to the spot, frozen half in fear and half in the gripping effects of the miasma. And so she watched, helpless, as Naraku walked up to Sango, and pulled out her own sword. He handed it to the boy that was suddenly beside him, the only one of his servants that remained.

Kohaku drew the sword back, blade aimed at Sango, as tears streamed from the taiji-ya's eyes. The boy rammed the sword into his sister's shoulder, and she passed out.

Meanwhile, Naraku, grinning, walked over to Miroku. He was practically giddy as he crouched down on the monk's level and looked him straight in the eye.

Miroku knew he would die. He couldn't even move as Naraku leaned down and pulled the rosary around his hand loose. It began to fall, slowly, ever so slowly, as Naraku walked away, out of the danger range, and then turned back.

Miroku's eyes went wide, and he watched in horror as Naraku snapped his fingers, and the hellhole in his hand grew steadily wider, out of his control. He desperately looked at Sango, unconscious beside her brother, and realized they would both be sucked in with him. He closed his eyes, said a prayer for their souls, and screamed as his body was ripped apart by his curse.

Kagome winced away, shutting her eyes tight at the bright white explosion, which was sucking in the remainder of the new, deadly miasma. Kagome felt the strength slowly return to her, and she stood slowly, leaning against the well behind her.

"Naraku." she spat, tears in her eyes. She stood up as he turned to her. "You..._you_ did this, Naraku! You killed Sango and Miroku! And you...killed..._him_ too, didn't you? Didn't you?! " she demanded.

"Of course it was me, dear." he said, smiling.

"I will _kill_ you!" she hollered, her shoulders shaking in rage. "I will kill you for what you did to them! To _him_! You will pay with your _life_! "

Naraku, being a total fool, walked up to her. "No, dear, I think not. You are too weak."

She wrapped her hand around his wrist, her other hand coming up to hold flat before his chest. A surprised look crossed his face, and before he could mask it, she let her energy shoot out at him. It blew him back, and he landed a few feet away from her, his hand gone past his wrist, where she'd held it. He was covered in a layer of burnt youkai flesh, but quickly shook it off as much as he could.

Kagome raised her hand to her bow and pulled it up, notching an arrow. The arrow and bow glowed from her power. _She_ glowed from her power.

She drew back the arrow.

She aimed at Naraku.

Naraku's eyes widened in fear.

Kagome's eyes narrowed in anger.

"_Die_..." she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks.

She released the arrow, closing her eyes. She staggered a few steps back, leaning against the well. Then, suddenly, she completely relaxed, unconsciousness overcoming her as she fell back through the well. Black and purple magic streamed past her, and a small, round, solid object rested against her breast...


	2. Waking

**Death Full Circle  
Chapter 2  
Waking**

Kagome blinked her eyes open in the brightness of her room. Her face felt stiff and rough, as if she'd been crying, and her body ached. She tried to sit up, but a sudden wave of dizziness struck her before her head was even off the pillow.

"Kagome!" her mother cried, and Kagome opened her eyes a bit.

"...Momma..?" Her voice was so hoarse. When had she last spoken? How long had she been unconscious?

...Why had she been unconscious!

"Oh, darling. Sota was visiting the well as he has taken to doing these days, and you were draped over the side as if you'd been climbing out and fallen asleep. He called for Grandpa and I, and we brought you inside. Tell me, honey, is something wrong in the Feudal Era? You had blood on your skirt, and you were asleep for two days. You were crying."

Asleep for two days? Blood on her skirt? Something wrong in Sengoku Jidai? '_I was..._'

Her thoughts came to a halt as it all came back to her in a rush. Inuyasha was dead. Sango and Miroku were dead. Naraku had killed all three of them. And she'd...she'd...

"Did I...get him?" she wondered aloud, eyes tight shut. She couldn't remember. She'd fallen in the well before she could see.

"Get who, honey? Tell me, is - " Mrs. Higurashi cut off as a child's cry was heard in the hall.

"Nee-chan!" Sota cried, running in through Kagome's open bedroom door. "You're awake! I was _s-s-so-o-o w-w-wo-o-orr-rr-rried-d_! " He threw himself on Kagome's bed, grasping her around the middle, before sitting up and glaring at her. "I thought you said Inu-nii-chan _protected_ you!"

The smile that was half-formed on Kagome's face froze, and she gulped, closing her eyes. Instantly, at her brother's words, the image of Inuyasha that had been branded in her mind returned.

Her breath was suddenly short, and a tear stole down her cheek as her brother whispered, "What's wrong?"

She gulped, and when she spoke, her voice was little over a whisper.

"...He's dead..."

Her mother gasped, and Sota's hands slid back as he leaned against the wall. Kagome slowly sat up, wrapping her arms around herself. "S-sango, too..." she whimpered, biting her lip as she spoke, "...a-and M-miroku. I-I - " Tears began to fall down her cheeks, and she gulped. "I-I couldn't do anything! I-I was f-froz-zen to the sp-spot! I-I...c-couldn't even m-move! I - "

There was a gasp from the doorway, and Mrs. Higurashi turned to see three young ladies, Kagome's friends, standing there. She gulped.

"Kagome's grandfather let us in downstairs..." Yuki started, "...and we came up...I...What happened?" She gulped at the sight of Kagome on the bed, crying. She was a strong person, and it took a rather lot to make her cry, and so seeing her bawling was a slightly disturbing sight.

"We don't know." Mrs. Higurashi said, nodding her head to some chairs, indicating they could sit. "We think she was caught by some bad people the other day when she was with some friends. We found her just outside, unconscious."

"Oh god...Kagome? Kagome, what happened?" Eri asked, her face concerned as she pulled the chair closer.

Kagome gulped again, and said thickly, "They're dead! They died! He killed them! All three of them!" She was crying very hard, and her voice was choked.

"Who?" Yumi asked quietly. "Who were you with?"

"Sango...and Miroku...and...We were supposed to meet Inuyasha, but he didn't show up, so we went looking for him, and he was in the alley...he was dead...and then he came...and he killed them, I know he did! He killed Sango and Miroku...and he admitted he killed Inuyasha!" Her tears started fresh.

"Oh, Kagome!" Eri reached out and enveloped her friend in a hug. They sat there for a while, and both Mrs. Higurashi and Sota left. They all remained quiet with Kagome until Eri finally whispered, "Tell us, Kagome. Who are they? Sango and Miroku and Inuyasha? Who are they?"

sniff, sniff "Inuyasha's the guy I told you about..." Her audience gasped, but she moved on. "...And Sango and Miroku are just my friends..."

"Oh!" Yumi cried, and both she and Yuki leaned in and hugged their friend as well. She was going to need all the love she could get! Her two-timing boyfriend-to-be had been killed!

"Are you sure you're ready to go back to school, Kagome?" Yuki asked, concerned, as her friend brushed out her hair.

Kagome sighed. "Yeah, I'm sure. I mean, the world is still turning, right? Everyone else still has to go to school, so why should I get another day off?" She wasn't as happy and excited as usual, but she wasn't exactly acting depressed.

Her friends had come over early to see her before they went to school, and had been surprised that she'd been getting ready for school herself. They were glad she was feeling better, sure, but afraid she might be pushing things.

But, of course, they ought to get her mind off depressing things, hadn't they?

"We'd better give you the scoop about school, then!" Eri cried. "There're three new students at school, in our class! Two of them are really cute boys, and one's a pretty girl! They're nice, except one of the boys is mean and all depressed."

"They just showed up at school the day before we came over." Yumi added.

Yuki leaned over and grinned. "The girl and the nice boy are great at studies! They're really smart and they do all their homework right! The jerk drags his ass, but does pretty well on the tests."

Kagome sighed. Back to gossip and high school and teenage girlfriends. She smiled sadly.

Oh well. Take what you can get.

Kagome smiled a little as she heard the school bell ring. She and her three friends were making their way to their classrooms, and Kagome was glad. Even if she had been going here for nearly forever, today she felt as though she would get lost.

When she realized they'd reached the classroom, her friends went in ahead of her, taking their seats. She glanced around, glad to see all the familiar faces.

And then she started so bad she dropped her bag.

Pencils went everywhere, and her books scattered across the floor, but she paid no heed as she stared at the person who'd startled her so. And he looked up at the noise, gaze first catching on her pack and spilled supplies, and then lifting up to her face. His eyes widened, too, as he stared at the startled expression she was wearing.

She gulped, and as her heart beat faster and her breath caught, she whispered, "Inuyasha..?"


	3. Meeting

**Death Full Circle  
Chapter 3  
Meeting**

It was his third day of school. He was talking to Sango and Miroku, sitting in the corner they had decided was theirs.

"So. Do either of you have any clue what's going on?" he asked quietly. He was border lining depression, worried sick over Kagome. He didn't know what had happened to her, even though he'd exchanged notes with Sango and Miroku. He now knew everything they knew, but he didn't know where she was, or how she was doing.

"No." Sango said. "All I know is we wear the same clothes Kagome always wore. Well, I do, anyways. So she must be around here somewhere."

"But we don't know where, yet." Miroku added.

Inuyasha was about to snap something at them, when he heard a clatter at the door. He turned around, and saw that someone had dropped their bag, and their supplies had blown everywhere. He glanced up to her face, and froze.

Standing before him, looking very surprised, was Kagome. No worse for the wear, whatever was going on, but she was staring at him. Her mouth moved very little, but he caught what she said.

"Inuyasha..?"

In an unprecedented display of emotion in that particular high school, he strode forward quickly and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her and pressing his face into her shoulder. Her arms went around his back, and he could feel her crying. "I thought you were dead!" she said, sobbing.

"I did, too. I was so worried, the whole time before I blacked out, the only thing I could think of was, what if Kagome shows up? What if he finds her, what if he hurts her?" He was murmuring into her hair, and he knew the people around him were staring and gasping and frowning and the like, but he didn't care. "Even after I woke up and found Sango and Miroku again...Oh, Kagome, I was so worried I could have died of it!"

He barely heard her, but she whispered, "...my heart was broken. It's mending again..." He hugged her tighter.

Just then the door opened, and he heard a disapproving 'ahem' behind them. Inuyasha pulled back a bit, and the two of them found themselves looking up at their teacher.

"Well!" he said, glaring at them. "What are you doing, and what have you to say for yourselves?"

"Sir, Kagome-san's under a lot of emotion stress, and she's not feeling well," Miroku said quickly, stepping up. "Do you think she could have a minute?"

The teacher looked back at the girl. She had tears in her eyes, and did look stressed and unwell. "All right. Head on out, and you can go to the nurse, okay, Higurashi?"

Kagome nodded, and before the teacher could say anything, Inuyasha led her out. He was about to say something as the two disappeared down the hall, when he looked down and saw the mess on the floor.

"What's this?" he demanded.

"Kagome-chan dropped her bag, sir." Sango replied, bending down to pick it up. "We'll get it."

She and Miroku worked at the mess silently, putting Kagome's things back in her pack as the teacher went about his teaching. When they were done, the slipped out the door, and the teacher was none the wiser until they were long gone, and he just decided to let it be...

"Kagome-chan?" Sango asked as they sat outside during lunch. It was a nice, peaceful day…just the perfect time to think about why on earth they were in a different time, and possibly a different dimension, since no one knew exactly how the well worked. "Do you know what's going on? Why are we all in your world?"

"I don't know." Kagome replied. She put a bit of rice in her mouth as she spoke. "But...I know you two died. I saw you. Naraku set Miroku's wind tunnel open, and it devoured you both. I heard it, and I spoke with Naraku after the fact, so I know it happened. I shot him."

Miroku waved away that thought, and leaned in close to Kagome. "What about the jewel?" he asked, he voice barely above a whisper. "Do you know what happened to it?"

"I know it wasn't destroyed." Kagome said suddenly, sure of it, though she didn't know how. "And I know it's here, with us, in my world." She closed her eyes. "It's as if I can feel it, as if it's connected to me somehow. I can't find it, but I know it's not...well, evil. Corrupt. In fact, it seems to be exceptionally pure all of a sudden."

Inuyasha leaned over and pressed his cheek to her hair again. "I'm just glad you're okay..." he whispered, making her blush.

"Ahem," a voice from above them said, causing them both to look up. Yuri was standing there, along with Kagome's two other friends, and she was blushing. "If you don't mind, we need to talk to our friend for a moment. We haven't seen her since the fiasco in Home Room."

"Well, I'm _sorry,_" Inuyasha said, though he sounded like he wasn't, "but you can't have her right now. I've been worried, and I'm not letting her out of my sight for _quite a while_."

The three girls' eyes went wide, and they drew back in a small circle. Inuyasha though he heard something along the lines of, "He was _worried!_ That's so _sweet!_" before they turned back.

"Well, we still need to talk to her. It's about you, though, so I suppose it doesn't matter if you're here."

Beside him, Kagome put her hand to her forehead and groaned. "Oh no...I _knew_ this was coming."

"Yes, and very well you should have!" Eri complained. "You didn't tell us he was a hunk!"

"Please, Eri, don't. He'll get a swelled head..." Kagome attempted.

"Come to think of it, you never even told us his name." Yumi said.

"There was a _reason_! I never wanted you guys to meet him!" Kagome cried, kicking her feet in frustration and falling back in the grass. Inuyasha, still sitting beside her, turned and gave her a look that said, '**I don't know what's going on, but it's pretty damn amusing**,' which included raised eyebrows and a smirk.

"Oh, Kagome, we don't want to take him away! We're your friends!" Yumi said consolingly.

"And unfortunately, you saw him first." Yuri added, pouting.

"But I still don't get it." Eri said, cocking her head to the side as she watched Inuyasha. "He doesn't look like a two-timer to me. Where did you get that idea?"

Kagome blushed and rolled over, burying her head in her arms. "I think I'll die now..." she muttered.

"What do you mean, two-timer?!" Inuyasha cried, turning to her. Sango winced, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Inuyasha..." she whispered, and he threw a glare at her. "Kikyo," she replied.

The response was immediate. He slumped to the side, looking away from everyone, and his face slackened. The fire in his eyes at the prospect of Kagome calling him a two-timer disappeared. '_She told them about Kikyo?_' he thought. '_I wasn't expecting that...Hell, I wasn't expecting her to care enough to call it two timing!_'

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she was saying. "I told them everything, I know…I told them about Kouga and Miroku, too."

Sango narrowed her eyes at Miroku. "_Miroku! What did you do?_" she demanded. Miroku's eyes went wide, and he gulped.

"I-I did nothing, Sango-san!" he cried, flinching back from her look.

"So was he the one that told you he loved you?" Eri asked, looking at Miroku.

"No, he's the pervert."

The three girls all made _Aaah_s of understanding. "So who is the—"

"Sango." Kagome cut Yumi off. "And don't say any more about it, please."

They spent the rest of the lunch period laughing and joking and a lot of explaining and catching up. It was insofar a fairly peaceful afternoon.

And then it happened.


	4. Love to Hate

**Death Full Circle  
Chapter 4  
Love To Hate**

A sudden shiver went down Kagome's spine, and she jumped up. Everyone stared at her, but she paid no attention as she looked around frantically.

"What is it, Kagome?" Inuyasha asked, standing and extending a hand to her.

"H-he's here! I can sense him!" she replied, turning this way and that, searching for him.

"But you said you killed him!" Sango cried, and all of them went pale.

Kagome turned to Inuyasha, fear in her eyes. "I said I shot him! I have no clue if he died or not! But he still shouldn't be here!" She turned away again, and made as if to run around the corner of the school, when a voice fell down to them. It was filled with anger and hate and even sadness, everything evil, and it inflicted fear on everyone in the courtyard. It wasn't saying anything distinct, just making a strange, choppy noise.

Kagome realized it was a laugh, just as she heard words.

"I'm up here, little priestess."

She looked up quickly, and saw a figure twice the size of a man floating high above them. He had a sharply-lined face and long hair. He was wearing strange clothes - a cross between ancient Samurai armor and some white, sheer material that reminded her of the Greek gods she'd studied once, and everything on his person was colored in black or yellow. He had a pack of spears at his back that reminded Kagome of a quiver of arrows, and his hair was partially tied back by bits of gold ivy and black cloth. A larger-than-life version of their greatest enemy in strange clothes. An evil smile was on his face, and he stopped laughing when he'd caught her attention.

"Naraku!" she cried, stepping back. "You evil, filthy demon! Why do you follow me!"

Though he only smiled, his eyes narrowed. "I'm a god now, little priestess, and I don't take kindly to insults. I never have. But I have had a week to decide how exactly to kill you, and I've decided just to smite you all at once!" His face was suddenly twisted in a semblance of angry, hating revenge. "You killed me that time by the well, but I came back, and now I'm a god! You have angered me, and now I shall destroy you!"

"K-Kagome?" Yumi whispered from behind her. "What is he talking about?"

"Back away, you guys. You need to stay back," she whispered in return, and the complied, stepping away.

"I shall kill you first, little priestess," Naraku continued, "as it was you who killed me." He pointed his hands at her, and a strip of lightning suddenly encased Kagome, wrapping around her waist and pinning her arms at the elbows.

Her eyes went wide. She was trapped! He would surely destroy them all!

But instead of attacking the others, or even coming near her himself, he snapped his fingers. Suddenly, behind him, a horde of demons sat, waiting impatiently for their turn at the humans. He pointed at Kagome, and the charged forward. She could see in their eyes that they had every intent of ripping her to shreds.

Then, quite suddenly, there was a holler behind her, and Inuyasha leapt through the first line of the demons, tearing them apart quite easily. When he landed back on the ground, he shook himself, and his hair changed from black to silver, and when he opened his eyes they were gold instead of violet. He was back to his demon self.

The demons that had been heading towards Kagome stopped, confused. Inuyasha snarled at Naraku, brandishing a claw in his direction.

"What now, Naraku?" he spat. "You can't kill us with those measly forces!"

"No, I had intended to kill you myself." Naraku said back. "Those were merely to frighten the little priestess."

At his words, Inuyasha leapt in front of Kagome, who was still bound by the electricity. "You won't come near her!" he cried.

But Naraku only grinned, turning his attention to Sango and Miroku. He raised his hand, and a miasma flew up from his palm. He blew, and it moved swiftly to the two, wrapping Sango's arms against her chest and continuing to circle her down to her feet, wreathing and becoming alive, a snake of miasma. Another stream turned into a thick rope, pinning Miroku's hands at his side and becoming a thick binding around his torso. The two fell to the ground beside one another.

"Miroku! Sango!" Inuyasha cried, running to their side. "Are you alright!"

While Inuyasha was distracted with his friends, Naraku reached into his 'pocket' and pulled out a length of chain. He extended his hand over Inuyasha, dropping the handful of metal with a 'clink.' It immediately wrapped tightly around Inuyasha, and he was bound as well, falling to the ground.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried, drawing Naraku's attention back to her. But Naraku held a hand in front of the girl.

"Ah ah ah. You're going nowhere, little priestess. You killed me once, and now it's time I returned the favor." He grinned at her, his face twisted, and threw another hand towards her. Another volley of demons came spinning her way.

As the leering faces of the youkai came barreling towards her, she closed her eyes tight. "No...no no no no...NO!" She pulled her arms away from her body, breaking the rift of lightning that bound her. Her miko aura exploded out, incinerating the lesser demons Naraku had sent at her. The large hanyou was staring at her, eyes wide, and didn't seem to realize that she'd grabbed the pencil next to her until she had pressed it into the flesh of his upper left arm. He hissed as she pushed her miko energy through the pencil and into him, twisting the little lead-tipped miniature spear and sending a jolt of pain through the surrounding muscles.

But even she couldn't seriously wound the now larger-than-life demon with just a pencil at her disposal, and he began to twist and turn, grabbing her free arm and flinging her headlong into her friend's bodies. For a moment she lay still, and Inuyasha let out a cry of outrage, trying to free himself and shred the cursed man who would dare harm the girl. But then she shuddered, standing slowly. With a gulp, she turned back to Naraku, glaring him down through fear-filled eyes.

"Ku ku ku, but this is so sweet!" Naraku cried. He leaned down to grab the priestess by the chin, forcing her not to break eye contact. "Everything I have given was worth it...worth it for this moment! Worth it to see this sweet expression on your face!" He grinned slowly, and his eyes, deep and red and suddenly lustful, were ingrained in Kagome's mind. He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "I know why that priestess chased your hanyou, now. She fell in love with hating him!" He kissed her temple, laughing as she flung herself back, away from him. Behind them, Inuyasha began snarling. "And now I with hating you!"

Naraku was still laughing as he pulled the blade from under his robe. He pointed the deadly little knife at Kagome, grabbing her arm suddenly and pulling her to him. He held her back to his chest, finding enjoyment in the expression on her face. Fear of him, fear for her friends, and a pleading to Inuyasha, to save her. "Delicious," he whispered to himself. He slit her throat.

Her eyes fell closed in that last instant, an expression of fear etched onto her face. Blood spurted out, coating Inuyasha as he fell to his knees. The hanyou gulped, trying unsuccessfully to force down his tears. Sobbing and howling at the same time, he began attempting to lunge at the man before him.

"Damn you, Naraku!" he cried as the demon dropped the dead body of the priestess on the ground. "Damn you through eternity, this life and into the next! I'll kill you! I'll track you down and tear you to shreds!" The boy was then overcome with grief, shouting out nonsense profanities and curses between sobs.

"No, Inuyasha. You die here." Naraku grinned, throwing the blade in his hands at the boy, piercing him in the heart.

Inuyasha took one last, gasping breath, letting it out in a sob before falling. And Naraku felt his work more or less complete, except for the loose ends of one exterminator and one priest.

He turned to them, grinning, and motioned to his side. A large dog was suddenly beside him, looking as if it were dying, covered in blood and obviously starved, as you could see its ribs. Its ugly lips were pulled back over sickening teeth in a snarl that might have passed for an insande smile, and its eyes flashed with an unnatural light. Its fur was mangy and missing patches, and its legs were too long and skinny to be natural. Its tail was twitching nervously, and the very end was shredded, bits of muscle hanging from the end of the visible bones.

"Do you like my pet, children?" Naraku asked. When they said nothing, he frowned, and then turned to the dog. "Go on, Lycan. Eat your fill."

And the school yard was filled with the dying screams of pain of a boy and girl, as they were ripped to shreds by a starving, half-dead creature, once the dog of the devil, and now of a more evil being than that.

The students were screaming around him, the boys staring in morbid fascination, the girls hiding their eyes He turned to them, grinning at their fear, before disappearing in a cloud of dust.


	5. Arina

**Death Full Circle  
Chapter 5  
Arina**

"He slit her throat, officer! I swear! And then the boy was covered in blood, and he was crying..."

One of the girls next to the boy telling the story whispered, "I think he loved her."

It was the next Tuesday after the strange incident at the high school, and police officers were still wandering around trying to get a straight story out of the student witnesses. Even though they all had basically the same tale, the officers just couldn't believe that the crime seen they'd come across was perpetrated by a large god-like man and his demon pets.

When they'd arrived at the scene, acting on a 911 call made by a student that said a man was attacking four other kids, it was already after the fact. And it was no longer a 'fight scene' or a 'crime scene,' but a murder scene.

One girl was lying on the ground with her throat cut open, facing a boy with a knife in his heart (forensics assumed it was the same weapon used to kill the girl) who was coated in the girl's blood, as if he'd been standing there when her throat had been cut. Behind him was another girl and boy, or what was left of them. They did look like they had been shredded by a rabid dog, torn to pieces, just as the witnesses described. In fact, the presumable circumstances for the four kids' deaths fit perfectly into the other students' stories. But no one was willing to believe that a god, a couple hordes of demons, and a demonic dog named Lycan had killed four high school students. So they set an investigation out for a man fitting the students' description (minus the godly details), and called him "Armed and Dangerous," even though the only weapon apparently used at the scene was the knife in the boy's chest.

Needless to say, they never found anyone who could have committed the crime. The investigation was sent to a special branch that dealt with such things, unsolved mysteries and so-called 'spiritual' crimes that were equally unsolvable.

Kagome blinked her eyes open. Her body felt heavy, and her head ached. There was a dim sense of fear overlaying all her other emotions and senses at the moment, and she didn't really move when someone picked her up, pulling her bodily close to themselves.

Then she realized that that someone was crying in her hair, and that it was Inuyasha, sobbing over her. She tried to lifter her head, looking up at him. His eyes were squeezed shut, and his hair, still silver, was draped around his face and over hers.

"In...u...ya...sha?" she murmured, pressing a hand to her throat. There was a burning sensation there, but as soon as she touched it, it faded away.

Inuyasha's only response to her awakening was to pull her closer to his chest, burying his face into her shoulder. "I hate this," he muttered after a moment, voice thick and dead-sounding. It took Kagome a moment to realize it, but he sounded defeated. "I hate this," he repeated. "You died...It's not right...seeing you die..." He threw his head back, and howled into the air, "WHAT THE FCK IS GOING ON!"

Kagome was suddenly bombarded with memories of what had happened. She started shaking as she felt that fear, the body-numbing, mind-stilling fear that had possessed her just before Naraku had killed her. She'd never felt that before. Was it one of those things one could only feel right before they died?

She buried her head in Inuyasha's shoulder, and started to cry. He only held her tighter, and they stayed like that for a long time. Eventually Kagome stopped crying, lifting her head to look at Inuyasha. She sniffled, pressing that all-encompassing fear down into the depths of her heart, hopefully never to be retrieved.

"Inuyasha? You're all right, too?" she asked. As he nodded, she suddenly became aware that they were in a position...And she didn't really care. She pressed her face against his chest again, fighting the tears.

A sudden cough from behind them had them turning to face a grinning Miroku and a blushing Sango. It was then that Kagome bothered to take notice of her surroundings.

They were sitting in a barn in a patch of moonlight, surrounded by hay. Up to their left was a loft with some of the bottom boards torn out, and the door to their right was hanging sideways. The light of the moon fell in through the roof, half of which was gone, and the other half looking as if it would fall soon.

Inuyasha gently set Kagome back on the ground, but didn't do anything to dispel Miroku's expression. Instead, he demanded quite bluntly of the monk, "Where are we?" in a tone that was a little closer to his usual one than any he'd used just yet.

Miroku turned serious. "How the hell should I know, idiot?" he said back, rather blandly, considering he didn't usually talk so informally. "Sango-san and I only woke up a moment ago, to the two of you...And this place looks like it'll fall down any minute." Miroku deftly cut himself off and changed the subject before either of the two teens could decide he would be better roasted.

Kagome stood shakily and wandered over to the ladder under the loft while the others kept talking.

"It was terrifying," Sango was saying. "I can still feel the fear I had when I was staring him down."

"I...I don't want to do that again." Inuyasha muttered. "It wasn't even my own death that hurt so bad, so what happens when..?" He cut off, unable to finish his thoughts.

Kagome lifted her hand from under the hay, pulling out a piece of very old, yellowed paper. "Hey, guys - " she started to call, but was cut off by the creaking sound of hinges coming from the run-down door.

Everyone turned to the entrance into the barn, and stared at a young girl standing there. She had short, ragged, red-brown hair that cupped sloppily around her face, and her eyes were a pale hazel color. She was wearing loose-fitting tan pants and a shredded-looking vest over her muddy white shirt. Her face was streaked with dirt and tear-stains, and she gulped under their scrutiny.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" she asked, her voice a high-pitched, squeaking whisper. "Why are you in this old barn? And who...who are you?"

Kagome walked over to the little girl, picking her up nimbly. She hugged the child to her chest and cooed, "What's wrong? Are you okay? Where are your parents, honey?" Sango was at her side, and Miroku and Inuyasha were watching from a distance away, but standing.

"I-I-I'm Arina...from Saft...there was a war...and my parents are dead!" She pressed her face into Kagome's shirt and cried.

Kagome realized that she was wearing scrappy brown-hued clothes that resembled the girl's, but in a little better shape. She also saw that the others were dressed so, too.

Sango reached over and patted the young girl's head. "It's all right."

"Now, child, would you tell us where we are?" Miroku said from behind them.

"sniff, sniff You're in Meci...in an old barn...outside the village. Meci was burned down a year ago...and it's not far from Saft...so Aoron sent me here...He said it was safe, since the Shift have already burned it down...they won't attack again. He's going to meet me here in two days. I...I heard you talking in here...and thought you might know where I could stay...because..." She stopped, and scrunched her eyebrows as she looked around. "But there's only four of you," she said slowly.

"Yeah?" Inuyasha asked from behind her. "So?"

"But Nemi said you travel in groups of at least six!" Arina cried.

"Wait, Arina!" Kagome said, stopping the child from possibly crying again. "Tell us, how old are you?"

"I'm nine."

"And who is...Ay-oh-rahn?"

"Aoron's my Sibling." Arina said, nodding as if that explained everything.

"Your brother?" Sango wondered.

"No, my Sibling. We're cousins, but he was told by Nemi to...to..." She broke off, saying something none of them understood.

"To what?" Kagome said, cocking her head to the side.

"To ishaptha. To be a guardian to me. He would be like a parent to me should anything happen to my own..." She looked like she was about to start crying again, but she held back her tears and continued. "Siblings keep you out of trouble. They watch out for you...and they'll lie for you if you need them to. You can always go to them if you need to talk, or be away from you home for a while...At least, I could always go to Aoron. And he lied for me to my Papa lots of times!"

"I see. I think we should talk to...Aoron..." Miroku was taking charge... "In the meantime, you should get some sleep. Lie under the hayloft and rest."

Arina nodded, and ran over to the ladder as soon as Kagome put her down. She crawled into the hay under the loft and snuggled up. Little snores were heard almost as soon as she closed her eyes.

"I think we should wait in this town until Aoron shows up. Then we should talk to him. Get a better feel of this area, and find out what this war Arina was talking about is. I have a feeling he should know more about it than Arina."

Sango nodded in agreement with Miroku. "Once we know a little more about this place, we can settle in and find out why none of us are dead."

"Or are we?" Inuyasha muttered. "Are we dead? Have we just moved on to the afterlife?"

"No." Kagome said. "I know what happens when souls are moved into the afterlife. Little demons take their souls away to be judged. No, we would know if that were what had happened."

"Kagome's right." Miroku said, nodding. "I know this is wrong, because there's no way we could all be in the same place if we were dead."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean!" Inuyasha demanded.

"Look, I'm not saying anything about you, Inuyasha. Even if you are supposed to end up in heaven, I don't care what you say, there's no way Kagome and I would end up in the same place. She's pure-hearted, and I have no illusions about my soul."

"Don't talk about me like that! I'm right here, you know!" Kagome cried.

Miroku continued as if she hadn't spoken. "Plus, that girl's alive. I know she is. Her flesh is real, and her soul is bound to it. Even if we were in limbo, or hell, her soul wouldn't be bound to her body."

"Okay, so we're still alive." Sango said. "We know this because there is substantial evidence to prove it. We'd know of we were dead, we probably wouldn't all end up in the same place, and there wouldn't be a living person where ever we did end up. Now that that's out of the way, we should probably focus on finding something for us and Arina to eat."

"We don't know where we'd be able to find food here." Inuyasha said.

"But still, I agree with Sango." Kagome said. "We should try to look for something to eat." Miroku nodded his agreement.

With a grumble, Inuyasha stood with the others and they made their way outside.

A/N: Okay, I don't usually do Author's Notes, but this is an emergency. I don't want you tracking me down to kill me when I don't update for a long time. I hope your happy, The Last, that I brought everybody back to life. Don't worry, I'll explain the confusion later.

Okay. It took me a long time to update Chapter 4 because ate up, like, three paragraphs at the end of the chapter, so I had to copy and paste that part off the floppy copy I have of Death Full Circle, because I do have it on a floppy. I only had up to Chapter 5 (this one) actually in my document manager, but I had all the way up to Chapter 9 written and a whole bunch of notes for future issues that need to be addressed (such as the still being alive part). I hadn't put them on yet because Chapter6 didn't look so hot andChapter8 I wanted to send in a different direction, which could drastically change Chapter 9.As you can imagine,this flopyis very important to me at the moment.

And now for the very bad news. I got so caught up in printing up a copy for my friend because she wanted to read it (I was at the libraray, by the way, waiting for my ride home to show up) and calling a whole bunch of different people to get a hold of my ride that I lost my disk. I don't know if it got left in the computer or if I put it in my purse, but this was a week ago. I went back to the library that weekend to ask them if they'd found it (and I figured they might have because I'd left the same disk there before. Ironic, huh?), but the lady told me to go to the information desk, and I doubt it's there anyways, but I should check soon.

Anyways, it could take me a very long time to get my disk back and redo Chapter 6, much less Chapters 8 and 9. I have three reports due in English, a project I'm working on in French, and an Algebra project I have to present some time next week. Plus, I'm having a whole bunch of people over some weekend in May for an Inuyasha Marathon with a few Fullmetal Alchemist episodes thrown in (I own a whole lot of the episodes of both series, and I'm currently arguing with a friend we're currently calling Kougara overwhich one of us gets Ed when we get to his dimension...don't ask.). Death Full Circle is a high priority...but I can't do anything until I get that disk back and have access to my notes and future chapters again. I was a big enough idiot not to save everything to my computer in the first place (that's the first thing I'm doing when I find that disk again).

Please don't kill me over this. I'm very sorry.

Plus, I think my Author's Noteis longer than the chapter itself, and I don't even like Author's Notes. Less fun to read, of course, but very long.


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